“You could hear the gas. It was actually, from a distance you could see the vapor coming from the ground,” said resident Edgardo Correa. “I thought maybe it was my pipes under the house or something like that until I seen in the ground the hissing coming up. I knew it was time to get away from here.”

Fire officials said one resident whose home sits just steps away from the gas main was the first to dial 9-1-1.

“We have a crack in a 20 inch high pressure gas main. It’s in a residential neighborhood. We’ve had to evacuate both sides of the street. We’ve also had to shelter and place, that is to move a number of senior citizens,” said Jersey City Fire Dept. Chief Kevin Stewart.

“I was panicked because I was giving my grandchildren breakfast and I opened my door and was like ‘Oh my God, what’s going on here’?” said Almacar.

Utility crews plan to cap the ruptured line, allowing most of the evacuated residents to return, except for three homes closest to the break.

“I see the Fire Department and PSE&G, but so far, nothing has happened, thank God,” Almacar said.

There was no word on what actually caused the natural gas line to rupture, but the threat of an explosion is over, according to PSE&G.